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Combat of the Greek Empire
Styles of fighting combat has always existed in tThe he Western Empire, and thanks to adventurers, combat schools have sprung up across Magna Hellas (also known as Magna Grecia) and the Alexandrian Empire. Dueling has been an art ever since dueling swords have been made. Styles may come and styles may go, but there are few notable styles that the Greeks have developed since they had the sword. As the Xiphos was reserved for close combat, so too, were dueling done among nobles for personal honor and personal pride. Aside from that, you have the combat styles of many cultures thrown together in the mix. All a combat style is simple — it's a way to defeat your enemy faster than the other guy. Phaeselis Psionic Dueling Psychic dueling is a style that is enjoyed by Psychic Warriors and Soulknives alike. There are thousands of styles, but dueling with one's mindblade or crystal weapon lends itself a special kind of success. The two dominate schools of psionic dueling include the School of Theseus, named after the Greek hero, and the School of Erastis. The Academy of Theseus deals with mindblades while the school of Erastis deals with the use of crystal swords. Academy of Theseus The use of a mindblade is a soulknife's principle weapon. It was said that Theseus was a soulnife by thee soulknives of thee Greeks. But of course, most myths told of the Greek Hero did not say he wielded a mindblade. Nevertheless, a man founded the school because he liked the Theseus myths, and -- although he developed the style -- he's too modest to take the credit for it. The style is flowing, and designed to flow, like a waterflow or a fountain. The stylist is trained to make his blows count, but also to make them flow from one point to the other in easy succession. The mindblade is light, and therefore, treated as a light weapon to allow for flowing and weaving in a personal swordfight. it has nothing to do with Theseus' quick thinking and strategy, the style was named in his honor.. The feat chain includes: Theseus Dueling Disciple, Duelist of the Roaring Falls, Duelist of the Shrouded Lake, and Falling Water Gambit. Extracurricular Tasks Superiority of Style (+1 Fame) Once per term, you can partake in a duel against a non-ally who is neither a member of the Theseus Academy nor an Theseus Masterbladesman, and whose CR equals or exceeds your character level. If you win the duel, you prove that the Theseus dueling style is superior to all others. Awards Theoretical Duelist (10 Fame, 5 PP) You have studied the theory of sword play as much as you have trained your muscle memory to execute the requisite maneuvers. You become specialized in Knowledge (history) and Sense Motive. Aldori Fencing (25 Fame, 10 PP) You are adept at the art of dueling . When performing a dueling parry , reduce the penalty on your parrying attack roll by 2 . When performing a dueling dodge , you take only a -1 penalty to your AC and on Reflex saving throws until the start of your next turn. Erastis' School of the Double Blade This school is all about mastering the double-bladed sword. Especially the one of Crystal manufacture. Erastis, a psychic warrior who served with Alexander the Great, devised a way to use the double-bladed sword in combat as a member of one of the light, skirmishing troops rather than one of the phalangites. Erastis perfected his techniques, and now formed a school to teach them. The style is about poise, but to see them in action, it's also about whirling the blade around. The double blade specialist is also taught to roll up on their feet as soon as possible. Still, there is a debate whether they are practical or not. Feat chain includes: Student of the Double Blade, Centered Poise, Dazzling Abeyance, and Erastis' Gambit. Extracurricular Tasks Revolving Disarm (+1 fame) By expending your psionic focus, you are able to spin your weapon rapidly while attempting to disarm your foe. Attempting to disarm your opponent twice in one attack action means suffering a -2 circumstance penalty to AC. Awards Rolling Recovery (10 fame, 5 PP) If you are tripped or knocked down, you may be able to roll to your feet immediately. By expending your psionic focus, you can make a tumble skill check (DC 25) to immediately bounce to your feet after you are tripped or knocked down. This is a free action. One Handed Strike (25 fame, 10 PP) By sliding your weapon forward in a one handed grip, you are able to attack a slightly greater distance than normal. By expending your psionic focus, you are able to make a single attack this round. This is regardless of the number of attacks available to you. Your reach for this for this attack is increased by 5 feet, but the attack is otherwise unaffected. Phaeselis Mundane Dueling Schools There are dueling schools that deal with the mundane, non-psionic ways of dueling. Anyone: Fighter, Psychic Warrior, or Soulknife, or anyone else; may seek training from these masters. Zorba's Dueling Academy Zorba was a duelist who specialized in longswords made from iron. Since long swords are thin blades of iron or steel, Zorba created a whole new way of dueling by observing herons. Zorba practiced the techniques, and then mastered his own style of dueling. Unlike the close quarters dueling that short swords demanded, this sort of dueling takes advantage of the longsword and its thinness compared to the xyphos. Zorba was self important, and a master duelist in his own way, but he lost a fight when he insulted a better duelist than he. He paid for his arrogance and his insolence with his life. Despite this, his school survives as Zorba's Dueling Academy, teaching the Way of the Heron. The feat chain is this: Disciple of the Heron, Precision of the Heron, Stance of the Heron, and Heron's Gambit. Grog's School of Hack and Smash Hack and Smash is the dominate, at least in the eyes of the Greeks, style of swordsmanship amongst the orcs (this is not true, and every orc barbarian who is quick on his feet and with his hands would gleefully show you the truth). Nevertheless, a half-orc named Grog perpetuates these stereotypes. Its a boring, but effective way of doing combat. The master of the school is Grog, and his students work with swords that are just impractical on the battlefield in the days of the Empire (but will become practical after a few centuries). Grog's style, Hack and Smash, is so simplistic it can be shown in a simple movie showing off the style that Hollywood had developed to yeah, wow audiences. , I Smash You with my Big Ass Sword, I Hack You to Pieces, finally Grog's Smash of Awesomness. meh.]] The Style is so simple, but still it's effective. It's just swinging heavy swords around while keeping your balance. Extracurricular Tasks Smash someone into Yielding (+1 Fame) Find someone not of your school and not a grandmaster, and hack and smash them until they are tired or weakened through loss of blood (see above video) and yields to your superior strength. Attempting to tire out your opponent in this way means taking a -2 on your damage rolls. Awards Heavy Endurance (10 fame, 5 PP) '''You gain the Endurance feat for free. If you already have the Endurance Feat, you receive the following benefit: You gain a +6 bonus on the following checks and saves: Swim checks made to resist nonlethal damage from exhaustion; Constitution checks made to continue running; Constitution checks made to avoid nonlethal damage from a forced march; Constitution checks made to hold your breath; Constitution checks made to avoid nonlethal damage from starvation or thirst; Fortitude saves made to avoid nonlethal damage from hot or cold environments; and Fortitude saves made to resist damage from suffocation. '''Deadly Stroke (20 fame, 10 PP) Your way of Hacking and Smashing has taught you a few deadly strokes. You gain the Deadly Stroke feat after attaining this form of mastery. The "Deadly Stroke" is actually a smash or a hack that is effective enough to be deadly but not a precise cut or slash to the body. Aristocles' School of Dueling Aristocles keeps the basic bronze rapier style alive in dueling, only this time they use Xiphos swords. The school is a particular favorite of the Aristocracy (rule by the best). The nobles in society favor this sort of combat over all the others. The dueling school specializes in personal, one on one combat and does know that this style of swordsmanship is not practical in a battle situation when the Phalanx is used. The Phalanx is a whole different kettle of fish for training. As a result, the school is a favorite among adventurers that have come home with large sums of gold, as the style is useful for their stock in trade. The style is kept alive in Magna Hellas or the Western Colonies, as well as in Hellas itself and in the Empire. Aristocles, however, understands that the nobles need something to defend their personal honor with, but he mixes the old swordsmanship styles with the new. The Khsatriya caste of the Vedic Quarter also enjoys this style and often come to learn the style and combine it with their own styles from Aryavarta. The style is also called the Style of the Wind. The feat chain is this: Disciple of the Wind, Duelist of the Wind, The Wind Speaks, Mastery of the Wind. Extracurricular Task The Wind Disarms '''(+1 Fame) '''As a disciple of the Wind, you are not to seek out combat, but to perfect your swordsmanship. However, you learn how to disarm your foe quickly and without much effort. The technique is similar to the soulknife's above, but you do it without spinning your weapon rapidly. You also may attempt to disarm twice on an attack action, but with a -2 penalty. Awards References